Princes Street from King Street 1868

Thomas Annan captured Princes Street through his lens, a stark reminder of Edinburgh’s urban expansion. Amidst the rapidly transforming city, gas lamps stand as silent observers. These streetlights, with their ornate design, symbolize not merely illumination but also the reach of modernity. We can find related motifs echoed in ancient Roman oil lamps, promising safety and civilization but here the lamps convey not just light but a more complex idea of civic control and industrial progress. Note how these lamps draw you in, suggesting a path through the dark, an entry into the unknown, just as ancient flames guided early humans through the night. But these Victorian lamps, unlike their classical ancestors, hint at the shadow of industrialization, hinting at the psychological cost of progress, and reminding us that even our brightest advancements cast long shadows on the human soul.